The Choices We Make
by C-kun
Summary: Tenchi finally makes a choice. But, does he make the right one? Rating for innuendo.


Book, Staff, and Spirit Productions

Indifferently Presents

A Rewrite of the First Fic We Ever Produced:

The Choices We Make

(Formerly No Need for Thinking of Me)

When you see her sweet smile, baby,

Don't think of me.

When she lays in your warm arms,

Don't think of me.

-"Don't Think of Me," Dido 

Ayeka Jurai, the first princess of the planet of the same name, stared at the cyan haired demon that had her arms wrapped around the man Ayeka loved. It was a situation that had played out so many times before; Ayeka finds Ryoko glomping Tenchi, Ayeka yells at Ryoko, Ryoko yells back, they blow up the house, everyone's happy. But this time, there was something different.

This time, Tenchi was returning the embrace, and the two had their lips locked in a passionate kiss, which Tenchi seemed to be enjoying. Ayeka stared at the two unaware figures for a moment, then silently shut Tenchi's door and slowly walked back to her room. A single teardrop splashed and soaked into the carpet halfway in between the two rooms.

~*~

"Miss Ayeka? Miss Ayeka, can I talk to you?" Tenchi said as he opened the door to her room. Then he frowned. "Miss Ayeka, what's wrong?" he asked, concerned. 

Slowly the blanket that lay over the lump on Ayeka's futon lifted, and Ayeka poked her head out. Her hair was down, one shining purple mass falling around her face. She was wearing no make-up, no ornamentation; she didn't even have on her wooden tiara. Her beautiful violet eyes were bloodshot and puffy with crying, and even now tears traced the tracks of their predecessors down her beautiful face. "Nothing, (sniff) Tenchi. What makes you think there's something wrong?" Her voice was strained from suppressing her sobs. 

Tenchi gaped. "But Miss Ayeka, you're crying!" 

"What's that matter to you?! You have that- that demon to comfort you! Who do I have?" She wailed and buried her head in her pillow again, crying. 

"Miss Ayeka...?" Tenchi asked, very confused.

She suddenly jumped up, and Tenchi's eyes widened as he stepped back. She was wearing nothing but a slip, a fact that certainly explained the shock on his face.

She glared at him furiously as tears rolled uninhibited down her face. "Don't 'Miss Ayeka' me! I saw you! I saw what you two were doing!" Her head drooped and she started to cry even harder. "You don't need me. I've been in the way all this time. I should have gone back to Jurai a long time ago." She turned and grabbed a bag out of her closet, then started to throw her clothes into it haphazardly. 

Tenchi stepped forward and said, "No, Miss Ayeka, don't go! We-" She cut him off as spun to face him, eyes blazing. "Don't get near me! I don't need you. I DON'T!" she screamed. Tenchi jumped back in surprise. "I don't. I don't..." she whispered, as if trying to convince herself.

At that point Ryoko's head phased through the wall next to the door. "What's all the yelling- Ayeka!" Ryoko stared in disbelief. 

Ayeka quickly turned away, but instead of putting her nose up like her normal royal self, she dropped her head and continued to sob. "So, Ryoko, come to gloat? Have you come to tell me about how well Lord Tenchi kisses, and your plans for the wedding?" Her voice was incredibly bitter. 

Ryoko and Tenchi stared at each other, at a loss at what to do. After a moment, Tenchi said hesitantly. "Ayeka, I'm sorry. I wanted to break the news to you slowly. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Please try to understand. Ryoko fought for me, she would have died for me. We've been through so many things together. I'm sorry I hurt you, but, we love each other." 

Ayeka turned slowly, her face cold, her eyes burning. "You do, do you? I don't know about that. I don't think either one of you even know what love is." 

Ryoko's eyes narrowed. "Of course we do, Princess!" She floated to Tenchi, and tenderly wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Tenchi smiled- not nervously, but wholeheartedly- and wrapped his arm around her waist. Ryoko continued, "We have a wonderful, happy relationship now. If fact, we were planning to have the wedding a month from now." 

Tenchi looked at her, appalled, and said, "Ryoko!"

Ayeka swallowed hard, and turned and started packing again, though more calmly this time. Tenchi said, "Ayeka, you're still planning on leaving?"

Ayeka shook her head, not turning. "No, no... I'm not leaving Earth. Sasami and Mihoshi would miss me too much. I need to be here. I just... I just need a vacation. I'll visit one of those famous western nations, America, or England. I don't know." She finished gathering her things. "I need to go, now. I'm going say goodbye to the rest of the family, now. I'll have Washu send me- somewhere." She quickly dressed, pulling on her layer of clothing. Then she picked up her bag and walked past then, eyes on the floor. 

They looked at her as walked past. She stopped in the hall, and looked back at them, nervously. "Er..." Her manners and dignity got the better of her. Swallowing again, she said, "Con...congratulations. I- I hope you're very happy."

Before they could answer, she quickly walked away. Tenchi stared after, and then called out, "Miss Ayeka... Good bye!" 

She stopped for a moment, then continued to walk down the stairs. 

~*~

"Tenchiiii..." the call echoed across the fields.

Tenchi looked up, and smiled. "Here, Ryoko!"

Ryoko emerged from the trees onto the edge of the carrot fields. She was wearing a sundress, and carrying a picnic basket. A moment later Sasami and Ryo-Ohki followed her. After a moment they reached him. Ryoko said, "It's lunch time, Tenchi. Sasami and I thought we'd come out and have a picnic with you." She pecked him on the cheek. 

Tenchi smiled broadly. "Well, thank you! It gets kind of lonely out here. I'd much rather be home with you and Sasami."

Ryoko smiled back. "We wish you were home too. But we have to feed Ryo-Ohki somehow, I suppose."

"Miya!" Ryo-Ohki said indignantly. 

Sasami smiled and patted the cabbit. "She's just joking, Ryo-Ohki. Tenchi doesn't mind growing your carrots." She spread out the blanket and Ryoko sat down and started to lay out the food.

Tenchi smiled to see Ryoko help out. She'd been helping out a lot in the two months since he had realized he loved her. She'd uncomplainingly taken over Ayeka's chores, and had actually started doing her own, as well. She had, of course, been better since she'd been merged with Zero, but she'd been wonderful the last two months.

As soon as she was done, he sat down. Sasami served herself, while Ryoko served Tenchi. Tenchi noticed she seemed to be suppressing some sort of excitement, but not doing a very good job. She watched him eagerly as he took a bite. He smiled as he chew, and when he finished said, "Mmmm, delicious!"

Ryoko smiled and squealed, "Really? I made it myself!"

Tenchi's hand stopped halfway to his mouth, the second bite of food clutched in his chopsticks. "Really?" he asked nervously, wondering when the poison would hit his system.

She continued to smile. "Mmm-hmm."

Realizing he was still alive, he decided to continue the conversation. "Er, great! Ryoko, that's wonderful!"

She grinned. "Sasami's been giving me cooking lessons. I think I'm finally getting the hang of it!"

Sasami had been eating, but she paused and said, with a small smile, "Yeah, she's really catching on quickly."

Tenchi sighed in relief. If Sasami thought she'd done okay, he wasn't about to become horrible sick and die. He continued eating. 

After a moment, Sasami spoke again. "Tenchi?"

"Yes, Sasami?" 

"Do you know when Ayeka will be back?"

Tenchi winced inwardly. Ever since he'd driven off Ayeka—he couldn't help but think that he'd driven her off—Sasami had been terribly lonely, especially when Mihoshi was away on patrol. Ryoko and Washu tried to spend what time with her they could, and she had Ryo-Ohki, but Sasami dearly loved her sister, and none of them could really make up for the older girl's company. 

He sighed. "I don't know, Sasami. She'll come back when she feels ready to."

She nodded, and they continued eating in silence, each thinking about life since Tenchi had decided to marry Ryoko. finally, when the meal was almost over, Sasami spoke again. "Tenchi?"

"Yes, Sasami?"

"Why didn't you marry sister Ayeka too? You're a Juraiian prince; you can take two wives if you want to."

Tenchi blinked, not really sure how to answer that. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Well, Sasami, Grandfather spoke about that to me, a long time ago, so I knew I had the option. But there were a couple different reasons why I decided not to. One, we're still on Earth, and things like that aren't acceptable on this planet. The more major one, though, is that I just don't love Ayeka in that way. I couldn't force myself into a marriage with only one way love; it wouldn't be fair to her or me."

Sasami looked disappointed. "Oh." 

She didn't speak again to either of them that day.

~*~

"Oh, Tenchi! Thank you!" Ryoko clapped her hands together, then threw her arms around her husband. "It's beautiful!" _It's the most pathetic gem I've ever seen in my life. I could have stolen better out of a "Discount Jewelry, One Credit Engagement Rings" store back when I was a space pirate._

"I thought I'd get something special for our second anniversary." _Maybe it will cheer things up around here a little._

On Tenchi and Ryoko's second anniversary, they were both home from University. Unfortunately, things weren't as happy as they'd been back in the old days. Washu was even more focused on her experiments, sometimes not leaving her laboratory for days at a time. They suspected that she resented their going to University rather than having her teach them. 

Mihoshi had finally been pinpointed by the Galaxy Police and her grandfather, and had been dragged away back to her real duties, since she technically wasn't supposed to be in the protected system. This left Sasami, now getting close to her teen years, with nothing to do but mope; and she was very good at moping, these days. 

Needless to say, Ayeka had not yet returned. For beings who live for centuries, vacation time is subjective.

Worse though, from Ryoko's perspective, was how not fun Tenchi was being at college. He was very focused on becoming an architect, like his father; therefore, he was very focused on his studies. Ryoko was seldom able to pull him away from his books and papers, which left her with very little to do. She was being faithful, of course. She very highly doubted that anyone besides Tenchi would be able to satisfy her. But even getting drunk with all the students was starting to get old. 

There were times when she was really itching for a fight, but Ayeka was nowhere to be found.

Tenchi was slowly being driven crazy by his wife. As much as they loved each other, she couldn't seem to understand how important these studies were to him. She was dragging his grades down, with all the constant partying and sneaking into his dorm room late at night for a little "fun," if you know what I mean. Sleep deprived and behind in all his classes, Tenchi was seriously worried about being able to get his architectural degree.

"Well, come on, Tenchi!" Ryoko cried joyfully, after putting on her new necklace. "Let's go have some fun! Let's go party!"

Tenchi's left eye twitched. _If I had a hundred yen coin for every time I've heard that, I would be able to afford getting my degree six times over. "Well, uh, sure. I have dinner reservations at a really nice restaurant; you know, the one we had our wedding party in?"_

This time, it was Ryoko's eye that twitched. _Oh, god, anything but that. I'm going to have to be good and not use any of my powers and sit there doing nothing, and, and... "Okay, dear. Lead away!"_

~*~

"EEARAUGH!" Ryoko yelled in frustration. "I'm going bananas! You're always working! Why can't we ever do anything _fun?"_

Tenchi gritted his teeth. "Because, like I've said a thousand times, I'm a brand new junior partner at my firm! I need to be at my job _every day! Otherwise I'll be fired! I can't afford to lose this job, Ryoko!" _

"Why do you need a job?! You're a fucking Prince!" 

"Not on Earth! I'm just like everyone else, here!"

"Then let's go to Jurai! We can have fun, there!"

Tenchi shook his head in amazement. "Ryoko, if you'll remember, Great-Grandfather Azusa nearly disinherited me for marrying the pirate that laid waste to most of Jurai! I don't think you'd exactly be welcome there! Besides, once I go back, I'll have many duties of state placed upon me, according to Aunt Funaho! I'll have less free time than I do here!"

Abruptly, like it always was with Ryoko, she burst into tears. She was clearly still angry, but now she was crying, too. "GOOOOD DAMN IT! I haven't done anything fun in over a year! All I do is cook and clean and try to keep Sasami's schoolmates from destroying the house!" Sasami was going to a strange school called Furinkan High, and some of her friends were in situations that made Tenchi's four admirers when he was in high school look down right tame. "We haven't even done it in two months!"

Tenchi's left eye twitched. At least she wasn't screaming about sex anymore; Sasami hardly needed any influences like that, what with the crowd she hung out with. And it's not like there was any _point in having sex. Washu sure had dropped the ball with that one._

"Ryoko, I'm tired. My job is stressful. We've been over this."

"But, but-"

"Ryoko! I don't want to discuss this right now! I'm going to bed."

And that was that. At least for the evening.

~*~

Tenchi sat, staring blankly up into the night sky. "She left me... I can't believe she left me..."

Even while his co-workers envied his youthful appearance, and the senior partners were more impressed with his work everyday, Tenchi's life had fallen apart. Ryoko had left, taking Ryo-Ohki with her. Sasami—who now went by Tsunami—had just graduated High School, but the only reason she was still on Earth was that she was waiting for her sister to return to tell her that she was leaving. And he hadn't seen Washu in months.

The worst part was Ryoko leaving, though. He thought back to her final words, as she tearfully bid him farewell...

_"Tenchi, I love you with all my heart, but I can't take this life any longer. I need adventure, I crave it. I'm going to wither away and die with this life you're having me lead. Even if you won't come with me, I have to go. Please, my love, please come with me..."_

He hadn't believed she'd really go. He simply hadn't believed she could. But when he refused, she had. She'd promised to return, but Ayeka was still on vacation, seven years after she'd left, so who knew when the far more ancient Ryoko would decide to return.

The tears finally came, and the stars refracted into a blur of light.

~*~

Tenchi sighed dully when the doorbell rang, and left his beer and his televised football (soccer, of course) behind. He resented it. 

When he opened the door, though, he received the second greatest shock of his life. "Tenchi!" the woman at the door cried joyously, giving him a warm hug as soon as the door was out of the way. 

He blinked stupidly for several moments. Finally, he got his vocal cords to work. "Ayeka?" he asked, unbelieving.

She pulled back and looked at him warmly. Sure enough, it was Ayeka. She was a little more mature than he remembered her; it only made her more beautiful. Her figure had filled out, and her face was even more majestic than it had been when he'd last seen her, ten years before.

"Tenchi! You look... well," she said, with a bit less enthusiasm.

He knew what she meant. He may have seemed to age no more than her, but he was dead inside, and it showed. "Ayeka... it's been... ten years."

She nodded and smiled. "It was a nice vacation. I met this great guy; he's not royal, but he's caring and sweet and noble, and all around wonderful. His names Davner; I'll have to bring him to meet you!"

He blinked. She'd gotten over him? She'd found someone else?

She waited a moment. Finally, she asked, "Are you going to invite me in?"

He shook his head to clear it, and quickly said, "Sure, sure! Please, uh, come on in."

He led her into his parlor, and said, "Please excuse the mess; I'm a little behind on my housework."

Ayeka thought it looked more like no housework had been done for three years. She gingerly sat down on the edge of the couch, after brushing away some empty beer cans and ancient potato chips. 

"So..." she said hesitantly. "I figure you wouldn't still be living with your father, so I looked you up first. I've been really looking forward to seeing you. How's Ryoko? Does she miss our fights?"

He wouldn't—couldn't look at her as he said, "She left three years ago. She was going insane from boredom, and left one night."

Ayeka blinked in shock. "She _left you?" __After all the pain I experienced, after my broken heart, after years of learning to let go, she left__ you?_

He nodded. "She couldn't stand my lifestyle. I was a normal while-collar worker, and she was an adventuress. So she left me. Now, I'm a normal unemployed bum." His voice was bitter.

Ayeka took a deep breath, and then said, "Alright. How is... Miss Washu?"

His face grew blank again. "The door in my father's house that led to her lab started leading to an ordinary closet again shortly after Ryoko left. We hadn't seen her for months before then."

"Mihoshi?" 

"The Galaxy Police transferred her a little more than a year after you left."

"What about my sister? Sasami?" Ayeka asked.

"She goes by Tsunami now. She finally left last year, after having her heart broken by a boy named Ranma, after he married another girl. I don't know the details, but I got the impression she... she really didn't have a chance with him anyway. She decided it was the final straw, and told me to tell you that she has gone back to Jurai with Yosho."

She stared. "Brother Yosho left too? Your Grandfather?"

Tenchi nodded.

Slowly, she sighed. "Well, I need to find them then. My sister and brother need me." She smiled a little. "Luckily, Davner knows about me, so I'll be able to bring him back to Jurai. After Grandfather Azusa let you marry Ryoko, he won't be able to complain about my relationship with Dav."

With that, she turned and walked towards the door. Tenchi stared after her, almost shell-shocked. Finally, he found his voice. "Ayeka?"

She paused, but didn't turn around. "Yes, Tenchi?"

"I just wanted to live a normal life, with my family and friends and the woman I loved. Was that really so wrong?"

One last time, she sighed. "Perhaps you should have made sure your family and friends and the woman you loved were compatible with a normal life." With that, she was gone.

The End

Author's Notes: Hello, all! I finally did it! I finally rewrote this stupid fic! You see, this was the first fan fiction story I ever wrote. Except this bears no resemblance to the story I wrote, except for the very first scene. The story I wrote was a really, really bad song fic with Ryoko acting horribly out of character, just so I could make a point. Here are the author's notes from that original story, so you can see what that point was. If you want to read the actual fic, you're going to have to find it yourself. And I doubt it will be up much longer, since I intend to have Gensao replace it with this one.

Well, that's it. This story was inspired by all the people who ignore Ayeka and have Tenchi fall in love with Ryoko for no good reason, and by the song "Don't Think of Me" by the English pop artist Dido (I don't know how many people will know who the heck I'm talking about). I don't have a problem with Ryoko getting Tenchi, but she needs to earn him. Many people just have him fall for her, without her having done anything to deserve his love. I think that a lot of Ryoko lovers won't like me for this one, but I am prepare for the flames. I'm also sorry I had to make Ryoko be so much a bitch, and that I had to ruin Tenchi's life. Send C&C to mstrshark@aol.com. The song Ayeka sang was (obviously) "Don't Think of Me," by Dido, and I would assume it is owned by her. Please, do send feed back. 

To make my point more clear, I was sick and tired of Ayeka bashing Ryoko lovers, and I became a Ryoko bashing Ayeka lover. One of the low points of my life, when I realized this. I've finally gotten around to rewriting it into a fic worth posting. I believe that I've kept everyone in character, considering the time span of the fic, and yes, I believe that something like this has a very high chance of happening if Ryoko and Tenchi end up together. If Tenchi's desire for a quiet life overrides his love of Ryoko, I think that, in the end, her love of adventure will pull stronger. That, unfortunately, won't work well. Now, I'm not saying this is absolutely what is going to happen, but I do believe it is likely. This is what I should have written a year and a half ago. 

Disclaimer: Tenchi Muyo and all its characters belong to Pioneer, and other people too, I'm sure. Dido and "Don't Think of Me" are owned by Dido, as well as whatever record label she uses. Not that I use it for anything more than a quote at the beginning, anymore. Davner is the online name of a Thomas Doscher, a really great Ayeka lover who, along with his friend Cavis, totally panned the original fic and made me realize how horrible it really was. I apologize for using his name, but I would like to think that he'd appreciate being made Ayeka's new man. At any rate, I do not own any of them. However, I do own this story, and it is Copyright 2002 by C-kun and Book, Staff, and Spirit Productions. Thank you.


End file.
